Polyvinyl butyral improves the properties of 3-dimensional nano-zirconia porous scaffolds for bone tissue engineering / 医学研究生学报

ABSTRACT

Objective The nano-zirconia scaffolds we previously prepared had a good 3-dimensional ( 3D ) connectivity but did not achieve the ideal sintering rate and compressive strength .The objective of this study was to explore the enhancing effect of polyvinyl butyral ( PVB) as a dispersant on the compressive strength of 3D nano-zirconia porous scaffolds for bone tissue engineering . Methods We prepared the slurry containing different concentrations of PVB and ana-lyzed the improving effect of PVB on the mechanical properties of the scaffolds by sediment experiment , compressive strength test and scan-ning electron microscopy . Results The sediment experiment showed no significant stratification in the slurry with 0.2wt%PVB, white suspension in the upper layer and white precipitate in the lower layer , with a significantly higher compressive strength of the scaffold ([0.324 ±0.030] MPa) than that of the scaffold prepared by adding other concentrations of PVB to the slurry (P <0.01).And the compressive strength of the scaffold constructed by adding no dispersant ([0.109 ±0.021] MPa) was remarkably lower than that of the scaffold constructed by adding PVB to the slurry (P<0.05).Scanning electron microscopy demonstrated that the scaffold prepared by adding 0.2wt%PVB to the slurry had a complete porous structure with the fewest and most sparsely distributed surface cracks as compared with other PVB concentration groups . Conclusion PVB can signifi-cantly improve the stability of zirconia slurry , enhance the compressive strength of the nano-zirconia porous scaffold , and make the scaf-fold more applicable to bone tissue engineering .